Songbird, Book 1: Sun's Arrival

Chapter 10

 Thunder Strike never realized how long the journey took. She had been gone for almost a week, and she was wondering what her friends were doing. They will be fine. Moon probably hates me by now. Thunder Strike wanted to head back to her home, but knew she couldn't and had to continue going if she wanted to defeat Nightmare. Tia gazed back longingly at Jade Wing when she flew over the Ring of Volcanoes. The view from here was stunning. Clouds above and below your head. Gray mountains and green trees. Blue rivers and brown soil. Really, Tsunami was right. It's a privilege the world gave her and she could enjoy it with whomever she wanted.

Tia knew who she wanted to enjoy it with, but wasn't sure she wanted to anymore.

Soon enough, she arrived at the tall green pine trees. Even though the fight wasn't until the next few days, she needed to see Nightmare. Thunder Strike scouted the area, hiding behind trees and ferns. Eventually, Tia found a clearing where she could rest and wait for Nightmare. Just as Thunder Strike was about to step into the sunlight, a crashing noise came from her left. Smoothly, she leapt out of the light and slithered into the dark forest. Could it be? Is that Sunfyre? It wasn't Sunfyre, but it wasn't a fox either. It was like the yin yang symbol spinning around and around. It made Tia kind of dizzy. The two mysterious creatures parted, and Tia could finally see who they were. The black one was... Of course, Nightmare. The white one was a bit harder to guess. Thunder Strike flipped through pages in her brain. Horizon! The second in power, and arch nemesis to Nightmare. They always fought, but sometimes tried to get along.

Thunder Strike watched them dodge, slash, drive over, and pummel each other into trees and rocks, which would splinter apart at even the slightest touch. Tia wanted to interfere, but was afraid to do so because of the fire bursts that could easily melt anything. Minutes passed by, the two still with not a scratch on their bodies. They probably knew Thunder Strike was there, but were too busy fighting. After all, Solarclaws know everything. The fight went on for a lot longer than Tia thought it would, and finally, Nightmare struck Horizon's head and she came plummeting down from the sky. Horizon landed in a heap on the ground and slowly twisted her neck to stare at Nightmare. "Why are you doing this?" She gulped, then swallowed hard. Nightmare looked down his snout at the poor dragon on the ground and said nothing. He flicked his tail the slightest bit and five seconds later, seven dragons shot down from the clouds and pinned Horizon down. Tia wanted to move. She needed to move, but her nerves wouldn't let her. She stood there, petrified as Nightmare and the seven dragons threw Horizon in a small prison, locked her up and flew away.

It wasn't until all of them had disappeared that she realized who the last dragon in line was.

Sunfyre...

Sun had joined the villains, after all! Rather choose the enemy over me. Tia was enraged. She picked up a tree branch from the ruins and hurled it across the clearing, vanishing in a second. Thunder Strike knew what she'd just seen. She would be chasing them right now if there wasn't a large hole in her soul that she was getting sucked into. Horizon is doomed, and Sunfyre is gone. What can I do now? Fight Nightmare until my death?! Tia didn't want to. She reeeaally didn't want to. The sun had already started to go down, and all she was interested in right then was to go back to The City of Hope and sleep there for a year. That's not what I do. That's not what any dragon I've met does, anyway!

Thunder Strike focused her eyes on the small black scale underneath the rubble. It was Nightmare's. With this, I can track them down... Tia sniffed the scale and tilted her head in the air. She closed her eyes and a dark gray trail appeared out of the blackness. She turned around, trying different directions, and finally opened her eyes to fly.

The sun was just above the horizon. Thunder Strike had been traveling for a while now. The softest patter of rain fell out of the sky. Thunder Strike longed for a storm that night, or else she'd have to create one. Hidden in the rain and lightning. That would be ideal. Horizon was trapped wherever Nightmare was, and Tia really wanted to know what they were going to do with her. I'll save her if I have to, but better with an army. Or... half an army, at least. Thunder Strike thought, thinking about the Stormwings. Well, half army or not, I will attempt to get Horizon back and team up with her. I know her, but she doesn't know me. Tia shut her eyes again, shifting her path a little to the right. Thunder Strike could barely see the three major volcanoes. I'd need to introduce myself to Horizon first. And... What in the name of Spirit would Nightmare be doing in the Ring of Volcanoes!? Thunder Strike sighed and shook her head. It was still so hard to figure that dragon out.

Later on that evening, the three major peaks came into view under all the fog. Tia had almost never traveled here. Even flying far over the volcanoes, it looked as if they were about to swallow Thunder Strike whole. The humongous towering beasts covered the land. She switched into a dive and fell towards the largest volcano hovering over the immense heat that radiated from the lava. Smoke and fog drowned out all the light. Thunder Strike landed on the hot lava rocks and squinted into the smoke. She thought she saw nine boulders in the distance, but no. They couldn't've been lined up that straight. Tia turned on her night vision and squinted even further. They were... scouts. The same scouts she saw earlier. Nightmare and Horizon were there too. Thunder Strike also saw Sunfyre standing right next to the cliff, the lava just below him. Tia really wished she was there and could throw him into the boiling magma.

Thunder Strike snuck up closer to get a better view of the dragons. Close enough to hear all of them. At that moment, Nightmare spoke, in a loud clear voice. "Hello, fellow dragons. We are all gathered here to see the great sacrifice. The blood moon will rise in an hour, and at the moon's highest peak, we will drop Horizon, our enemy, into the lava!" Tia bit her tongue to stop herself from yelping. About one hundred dragons were standing and sitting all around the volcano, faces lit by the dim orange glow coming from the crater. Nightmare continued. "But you know who else backstabbed us?"

I have a bad feeling about this... Thunder Strike thought.